Cutting Ties

With Social Media & Your Phones

"A life exists beyond whatever social media can temporarily offer you."

Smartphones have become a product of who we are. It seems that no matter where you go, no matter who you encounter, our phones are always attached to our hips. You see it everywhere, someone is always seemingly overly invested into their phones (even at times they should not be).

Phones, and apps have been a great advancement that the world has been able to partake within. The sheer capability that technology offers is astonishing in it’s own right. But, it seems that in the society we live today, we are leading lives in a disconnected, yet overly connected world.

There is always something new that our phones have to offer. There is always something new that you can see or do with your smart phone, something new it can bring. Different apps you can download, new websites to browse. The wonders of advancement in technology is never ending.

But when did:

“Follow me on twitter", "@ me on Instagram."

Become more important than living the life we currently lead? When did these apps become more important then physical in person interactions?

We see it often, we partake in it daily. These apps and our phones have ultimately become a product of who we are entirely. I mean admit it, how often do you find yourself having a minor panic attack when you temporarily misplace your phone?

Often I’m sure.

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Although apps are great, and phones provide connections we never had prior. Many people have seemingly become “overly-invested” within them.

When what’s trending on twitter and how many likes you got on that last Instagram post seem to be of considerable importance when it comes to the life you are living, it may be time to re-evaluate the connection you have with your apps, and your phone.

Believe it or not life still exists outside of Instagram or Twitter. Sure, you may not be able to get the latest insight to the Kardashian’s or see what Ryan Reynolds ate for the day if you aren’t checking your phone every few hours, but life still goes on.

A reality exists outside of these devices and apps. And even though the idea of having a life beyond these apps (or your phone’s) may seem insane to the latest people in our society today. A reality still exists. It is up to you to make that shift. Life in a way, has become revolved around these social media platforms, and has been put on hold outside of them. But it doesn’t have to stay that way.

Social Media has its perks, but it has initially placed us into this endless cycle, one that seems impossible to break. Sure, these platforms may temporarily bring you “joy,” but they have also taken you away from the ability to be present, and live life as we have always intended to.

The beauty of life, is that you do have the choice to choose to step away from this reality and into a new one. Having an obsession with your apps or your phone does not need to persist further if you wish to break that cycle now. You can.

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Every day you have an opportunity to re-start, re-charge and start over. You have the full ability to put your phone away, stay off your social media apps, and actively engage within your community, with friends, with family, and with the world around you.

Without needing to use your phone.

When you are so wrapped up into these apps, it can be easy to become a part of the “drama” that you never would have imagined being a part of some years ago. It’s easy to lose sight of who you were going into it, and It’s easy to forget that life is still happening outside of it. But, it doesn’t have to be that way.

If you desire, you can do a complete 360 of the attachment you have developed from your devices and apps, and within this post I will delve into how.

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So how then does one take steps to “freeing” themselves from the ties they have placed upon their devices? How can one really step away from that reality, and into a new one. One that isn’t driven by the amount of likes you have. One that isn’t driven by who reposted your tweet. And one that isn’t completely revolved around these apps and their devices?

That starts with your ability to gain self-control, and choose to disconnect. Starting small is always the best approach one can take when it comes to pursuing a new challenge. Which for many, ridding their attachment to their phone’s or apps, is one.

When you choose to start small, it trains your brain to eventually do it habitually. If you have a really bad obsession with being on your phone or the apps you have downloaded, then you may want to start at the bare minimum. This means, when you wake up in comparison to immediately rushing to check your phone, you instead choose to walk right into wherever else you need to be or do, and start on that task.

1. Leave the phone behind.

In the mornings it is so easy for us to grab our phone and check it. It’s easy for us to then become swept up in the latest tea that twitter has to offer, and it’s easy to watch half of our day pass us by because we lost track of time due to becoming sucked into the vortex that social media tends to do.

Don’t grab it. Leave it there. Unless you are expecting an important call for a job, or a family member. Stay off of it.

Life holds so much more meaning than whatever these platforms may have to offer. Yes, it’s okay to have these apps. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s okay to use these platforms to spread positivity, stay connected, meet new people, be informed, or to simply be heard. But, these platforms should not define who you are. They should not be where the most of your time is spent.

2. Let yourself be bored.

Boredom is a gateway to creativity. Boredom is an opportunity to experiment, and figure out those hidden talents you never knew you had, or did but allowed to subdue due to your lack of commitment to them. Let yourself be bored.

A LinkedIn I watched recently said, due to all the social media apps and all the advancements our phones offer, the human attention span has shortened to a mere 8 seconds. How sad is that? Because everything is at the tip of our fingers, and our ability to switch from one app to the next is so easy to do, society has ultimately shortened their attention spans.

Don’t be that person anymore. Focus. Stay driven, and let yourself experience life as it was intended to be. In person, fully committed and fully focused.

A life exists beyond your phone. Step away from it, temporarily delete the apps off of your phone if you need to. Track where you spend the most time on your phone and start by cutting it down by a few minutes/hours each day. And actually let yourself Be Bored.

Life is here, Life is now. It’s waiting and ready for you to embrace it.

When you sit around in silence, or choose to instead go do something else, you give your mind a chance to stop moving at 100 miles per second, and actually allow yourself to take a breath. You give yourself a chance to slow down and really embrace everything that this life is. Sure you may feel anxious or wonder, “what did I miss” but, this will subside as time progresses. You will look forward to these moments away instead.

3. Slow down, find a new hobby.

The opportunities you have outside of these platforms are endless. Really. With all the technological advancements we have, that provides so many more opportunities for us. If you think back 100 years, they may not have been able to join a club, or partake in a variety of opportunities that exist in the world today. You do. So let yourself get out and participate in them.

Find something of interest to you, and allow yourself to become absorbed into that instead.

Cut ties and disconnect for a while. Find a hobby you enjoy (that does not include your phone) and every time you want to “check your social media” or “check your phone” do that instead.

Go for a walk, paint a picture, read a book, go play a sport. Meet up with friends you haven’t actually seen in a while, and leave the phones and distractions behind. Give yourself a chance to really experience life outside of these devices. Substitute these new hobby’s in place of the other option. If you do, you will see how much more gratifying the experiences are.

Cutting ties with your device and these apps, isn’t something that will come easy at first. It may seem like you are pulling hair. But, with time, dedication and a willingness to stay the course. Letting go of these apps, will allow you to release those binds or “obsessions” you may have once held for it prior. By disconnecting, you will allow yourself to find a connectedness within. You will gain experiences you have always longed to have. You will create new memories that you will actually get to brag about in five-ten years from now.

I promise you, any experience you have outside of these apps and your phones, will bring you so much more satisfaction than whatever they temporarily had to offer you. True happiness will not find you if you continue to allow these apps to control the life that you lead.  

Take some time off, disconnect for a while. Cut the ties you have with social media, and your phone, and look up. 

I promise you, in a month from now social media will still be there. Even well beyond when you go, it will still be there. Your life is here, now. Time is of the essence, and you were not sent here to simply waste hours on your devices. You were meant to live. And now you have new memories, new experiences, and a new connection with yourself, your community, and those around you. All because you chose to break free from the chains those devices once held upon you. You chose to look up.

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